Queensferry Community High to be rebuilt by 2020

JOHN-PAUL HOLDEN

PUPILS and staff at a city secondary are celebrating after it was confirmed the school is to receive a multi-million pound cash injection for a new campus.

Scottish Government ministers have confirmed Queensferry Community High will be rebuilt by 2020 as part of their Schools For The Future programme.

Although precise figures have not been released, it is believed the building will cost in the region of £30m, with around two thirds of that being funded by the government and city council chiefs covering the remainder.

Confirmation of the investment will come as a relief to teachers and youngsters after earlier plans for a replacement building were delayed by changes to European accounting rules.

Signed off under the Scottish Futures Trust (SFT), the project was originally among those treated as private sector based. But updated regulations meant it could have been categorised under the public heading, leading to a major impact on budgets and forcing detailed contract reviews.

It has emerged SFT leaders have successfully re-drafted construction proposals, enabling the project to retain its private classification.

School leaders said the money would transform the learning environment on offer.

Headteacher John Wood said: “The school’s staff, pupils, parents and partners are excited by the new build and the contribution we can make to its design.

“It will give us opportunities to make sure that the facilities are appropriate for the most up-to-date thinking around learning and the courses that we can offer our young people.

“Of course we will also need to challenge ourselves to look ahead to future generations who will follow and how they too may benefit from this exciting new phase of Queensferry Community High School.”

City bosses also welcomed news of the investment.

Councillor Paul Godzik, education leader, said: “This funding will allow us to replace the existing school and provide first class facilities that can be used both by the school community during the day and the wider local community outside school hours.

“Upgrading and improving our schools continues to be a key priority for the Capital Coalition.”

Angela Constance, cabinet secretary for education, said: “The new Queensferry High School will be a fantastic, modern building that pupils, teachers and the whole community will enjoy for generations to come.

“Two secondary schools and one primary school are currently being built in Edinburgh through our Schools for the Future programme and I’m delighted even more pupils will benefit from the funding through the new school announced today.”